Revelation tells us about what will happen at the end of this age. In simple terms, God’s victory over death and sin will be universally and completely manifest in creation. He will make all things right. The Devil, his angels, and all who chose his ways will be separated from the final union between heaven and earth. And God’s people will live with him in a restored new creation.
Yet, when we read through Revelation, the imagery and narrative can easily confuse us. We get lost in the details. Symbol and literal seem mixed and become difficult to navigate for any sure interpretation. One moment within God’s restoration causes us particular pause.
After Christ returns and defeats evil, Satan is imprisoned. Then, after 1,000 years, God releases the Devil again to wreak havoc. Why would he do this?
Where Does the Bible Talk about the Release of Satan?
Revelation 20:7-10 talks about the release of Satan after the thousand-year reign of Christ, often called the Millennial Reign.
Even before the Millennial Reign, Jesus returns to earth in glory to defeat the Devil and his servants. Revelation 19 shows Jesus as the victorious King riding on a white horse. Christ finally asserts his authority over the nations and establishes his dominion. God throws the Antichrist and the false prophet (who have both oppressed the righteous through Babylon) into the Lake of Fire, ending their rule.
Beginning in Revelation 20, an angel descends from heaven and binds the Devil with chains and locks him away. This imprisonment lasts for a thousand years. Revelation gives the reason—this keeps Satan from deceiving the remaining nations. Christ rules from Jerusalem, and the thousand-year reign is one of peace and justice. Those martyred for faith in Jesus also return and reign with him in what scholars call the first resurrection.
The Millennial Reign harkens back to Old Testament prophecies regarding the Messiah’s reign of peace and justice. Isaiah 2:4 and 11:6-9 declare there will be a time of worldwide harmony from the messianic rule, where nations no longer go to war and creation begins a great restoration.
Revelation leads us to this event, a fulfillment of Old Testament promises where God shows the principles of what he designed Eden and good government to be.
However, at the end of the thousand years, God releases Satan from his prison.
What Happens after the Release of Satan?
When God releases Satan after the Millennial Reign, Satan does what he has been doing for centuries. Jesus declares about the Devil, “He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks out of his own character, for he is a liar and the father of lies” (John 8:44).
Satan’s name means “adversary” or “accuser,” implying someone who opposes or challenges others. The Greek Satanas keeps the same meaning. The Devil resists and opposes God first, and from that rebellion, all the Lord wills and creates, including the special role for humanity.
Therefore, upon Satan’s release from the Abyss prison, Satan deceives the people of the world, symbolized as Gog and Magog. Satan gathers a huge army to rebel against God. The nations are given a choice: the righteous rule of Christ or the lies of the Devil. The armies of Satan besiege the “camp of the saints and the beloved city,” which is likely Jerusalem.
However, the attack doesn’t last long. Fire descends from heaven and destroys the armies. God demonstrates his power and faithfulness to protect his people. God then finally throws Satan into the Lake of Fire with the Antichrist and the false prophet.
The next events unfold quickly. With Satan gone forever, Revelation describes the Great White Throne Judgment, where all people from all of time come to stand before God and are judged according to the Book of Life. Those names not found in the book have the same fate as Satan and are cast into the Lake of Fire. People found in the Book of Life see the new age, the new heaven and earth.
What Do Different Scholars Say about the Release of Satan?
Interpretations of Revelation vary widely. Some view the whole book as completely symbolic while most view it with some combination of symbolism and literalism. Despite these interpretations, the question remains: Why would God release Satan to deceive people?
Many scholars argue the release happens to test humans' loyalty to God. During the Millennial Reign, Christ rules with complete justice and peace, what humanity claims to long for. But what happens when there’s a choice? Not everyone who lives during Christ’s earthly reign follows Christ from the heart, in faith. The rule of Jesus may be perfect, but do people truly believe it’s the better way? Rebellion comes from the core of the human heart. The “flesh” wants its own way, no matter the cost. By testing humanity, God confirms the loyalty of those who truly believe in him and will have the reward of the new heaven and earth.
G.K. Beale and other scholars note that this rebellion shows the absolute depravity of the human heart. People aren’t basically good if they have such a clear choice and decide to rebel against purity and embrace a lie. After a thousand years of perfection and truth, the nations rebel once again. This depravity justifies God’s choice not to allow them into the new heaven and earth. Through permitting this final rebellion, God reveals his righteous judgment against the source and nature of sin.
Along with these points, some scholars focus on God’s ultimate defeat of evil. Satan has acted throughout history as the ultimate adversary against God and the people made in his image. Even after his deception in the Garden of Eden, he continued to oppose God’s redemptive plan. However, at no point does this truly challenge God’s authority. There’s no real battle here. God’s sovereignty allows it for a purpose. He can end it at any time. Revelation assures us God will end such rebellion swiftly, both Satan and all who chose to follow him.
Still others primarily view the events as God’s fulfillment of Old Testament prophecies. These scholars think many modern Christians have forgotten the prophecies about Jerusalem and Israel, or twisted them to only be symbolic of the church. Revelation places these events in the end times to show God will fulfill his promises to the Jews and Jerusalem in literal terms, along with the larger cosmic redemption of all believers.
What Should Christians Today Understand about the Release of Satan?
Some Christians view Revelation as simply about the end times, a future event distant from our everyday lives. The end seems so far away that it has no impact on today, or perhaps seems like it won't come at all.
These are dangerous thoughts. While Revelation communicates the end of this age, the book has important lessons for us today. Jesus talked about the end in the Gospels (Matthew 24-25) for a specific reason. God wants us to live today with the end in mind. A secure and future hope gives us strength to endure our struggles today.
The first part of Revelation also includes timely messages to seven churches. Just as we take important and inspired principles from apostolic letters to other churches, we do the same from the whole of Revelation, written to the church of its day.
First, Satan's release after the Millennial Reign leads us to an uncomfortable truth. The nations had been living in perfect righteousness and justice, and creation flourished. When Satan is released, the nations have a very real and literal choice: living in perfect justice and peace or a lie. They choose deception and Satan himself.
This removes excuses for sin. It’s simple depravity. Many people today give excuses for not believing in God. If he’s so good, why do bad things happen? Why is the world so corrupt? Why would a good God allow that? Or perhaps people blame temptations, as if “the Devil made me do it.”
The release of Satan exposes our rebellious hearts. We say we want a perfect world, one without death or sin or corruption, and it doesn’t appear to be an option today. But when it is actually and literally an option, some people will still rebel against God and follow the lie instead of the truth.
God took centuries to prove this already. The slaves of Egypt cried out to God for deliverance. He freed them and gave the Israelites a land of abundance. He promised they would live a life of abundance and peace if they kept the law he gave through Moses. God would defeat their enemies and give them countless resources if they would only obey and worship him. What a deal.
The Old Testament becomes a history of human failure to keep such a deal. The problem? The Old Covenant relied upon our hearts to keep it. And as Paul tells us, God designed the Law to fail, to show us our depravity, much like the release of Satan does.
Therefore, God promises a new covenant, one where he transforms the heart. Through Christ and the New Covenant, he removes our depraved and rebellious nature and shares with us his divine nature through the indwelling Spirit.
As we’ve mentioned, the release of Satan reminds us of the Garden of Eden. God’s sovereignty allowed the serpent to tempt Adam and Eve, which ultimately led to the Fall. Adam and Eve lived in a perfect place, literal paradise, and they succumbed to temptation. Jesus, when faced with temptation and despair in a garden, chose to submit to his Father instead. That’s the Spirit given to those who repent.
The release of Satan redeems humanity. It gives humanity another shot to do the right thing. After living in paradise, some people will choose God’s reign when tempted by Satan himself. Not all, but many.
It’s also important to point out that the release of Satan sets up a choice between two kingdoms: the Kingdom of God and Babylon. Much of Revelation prior to Christ’s return details the evil and oppressive actions of Babylon, which symbolizes the reign of the Devil on Earth through corrupt empires. Humanity in Revelation had seen the fall of Babylon and the end of their leaders, the Antichrist and the false prophet in the Lake of Fire.
After the release of Satan, some people choose a defeated kingdom, one they saw destroyed by Christ’s return and their leaders sent into eternal torment. In deciding to follow Satan, they choose that end, as well.
The release of Satan should humble us. Left to ourselves, we would rebel. Our depravity earns us eternal torment. All have sinned. And the wages of sin is death, spiritual and physical.
But we haven’t been left to ourselves. God sent his Son because he loved us so much. So those who would choose to believe wouldn’t perish but have eternal life. This should make us fall down and worship God, realizing his great grace and mercy toward us. We can judge the people in the Revelation narrative for openly choosing Satan, but we must realize we would do the same apart from God’s grace. Looking at the release of Satan, we must humbly assess our own hearts today. We must choose Christ and his kingdom over Satan and the kingdoms of this world now, taking up our cross every day, receiving his new mercies every morning. We can only do this through his Spirit and love.
Peace.
Photo credit: ©Getty Images/claudiodivizia
